[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 209 (Thursday, December 21, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1745-E1746]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 1, TAX CUTS AND JOBS ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. GENE GREEN

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 19, 2017

  Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to 
the Republican tax bill and to the misguided priorities that the GOP 
has brought to policymaking this Congress.
  There was a time when it was taken for granted that Congress would 
wait for Congress' independent scorekeeper to evaluate the impact of 
any legislation on the deficit or the budget before passing any laws. 
People knew that the deficit mattered to the government's ability to 
provide for our children and grandchildren, and to the economy their 
ability to provide for themselves. Republicans, especially, professed 
to know that the deficit mattered.
  It was especially unthinkable that Congress would pass important 
legislation, like tax reform, without waiting for a cost estimate of 
the bill. As recently as March, my colleague Rep. Brady said that 
economic growth from any tax reform package would need to be ``not 
economic growth judged by us, but by the Independent Joint Committee on 
Taxation.''
  The GOP should care about the deficit. We haven't been able to 
reauthorize CHIP funding since it expired months ago, because 
Republicans won't support health insurance for children without funding 
offsets. If only they had the same concerns when it comes to tax cuts 
for their donors and for President Trump.
  Republicans will start to care about the deficit again when Medicare, 
Medicaid, food stamps, or other programs for the low-income are debated 
by Congress. Just like CHIP, these programs cost far less than the more 
than $1.5 trillion that this tax cut will cost, but they might be too 
expensive for the GOP.
  There was also a time not too long ago when Republicans, as much as 
Democrats, legislated for the common good, or at least their conception 
of it. It's clear that those times are past.

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